Mt. Lebanon tailback Jake Rolfsen breaks through the line during Southeastern Conference action versus Bethel Park. Lebo dropped a 14-3 decision to the Blackhawks.
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Because he had to attend a funeral last Saturday, Jeff Metheny could not personally scout his upcoming opponent, Woodland Hills, which lost to McKeesport, 33-20, in a non-league football contest. However, the Bethel Park head coach will have his Hawks well prepared for when the Wolverines invade the Hawks’ nest for a Southeastern Conference clash at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 13.

“With films these days, the only thing you miss is the traffic and people screaming at each other,” Metheny said. “Woodland Hills is going to be a heck of a game.”

While the Hawks are 2-0 in the conference after a 14-3 win over Mt. Lebanon, the Wolverine’s are 0-1 after dropping a 16-10 decision to Upper St. Clair in their season opener. Though 0-2 overall, they still remain ranked among the top teams at the Quad-A level in the WPIAL.

“They are good. They are big, fast and well-coached and getting better,” explained Metheny. “They played two pretty good teams and those football games could have gone either way. They are right in there with the best of them in the WPIAL.”

With a third-straight victory, BP could be considered in that group. Key to a triumph over the Wolverines this Friday will be the Hawks’ ability to move the football as they did against Lebo. But, they also must maintain a grip on the ball.

While BP rushed for 274 yards, including 105 by Alex Minton, they committed some costly turnovers that prevented potential scores. After Gary Gerst recovered a Lebo fumble, Levi Metheny converted the miscue into a 1-yard TD run in the first frame. With 2:34 left in the first half, Zak Enick and Minton combined on two plays for 90 yards and BP’s only other score.

“Against Woodland Hills, it’s going to be tough treading. You earn every inch you get against them so it’s important that we run the ball well against them (like we did against Lebo) but we can’t be careless with the ball.”

One of BP’s fumbles resulted in Lebo’s lone points, a 40-yard field goal by Rob Constantino that closed the first half of action. In the second half, BP missed a 17-yard field goal and fumbled twice, once inside Lebo’s 25-yard line.

BP’s defense has been exceptional, allowing just three points in two games and Metheny tipped his cap to his assistants Mike Miliken, Brian Scott, Andy Assad and Jim Engott for preparing the Hawks.

From a personnel standpoint, Mike Grimm at nose guard played havoc against Lebo. Linemates such as Ryan Sosnak, Shane McNabb and Kevin Boyle also excelled. They kept the pressure on rookie quarterback Kellan Stout. Carmen Jasante, Gerst, Minton, Jake Murphy, Corey Roach and Christopher Papalia were among other standouts on the BP defense versus Lebo. Papalia also excelled in the punting department. Plus, he almost intercepted a pass in the defensive secondary.

“On offense, we don’t have a 200-pound back, but we do have quality backs like Minton, Enick, (Chiante) Pryor and (Danny) Emma that we can spread things around and our offensive line has done very well. Those guys are all well-coached but we can’t forget the defense.

“We did not give an inch. Those guys have hung together, played hard and played well,” Metheny said. “The guys on the defensive line have done a great job and those guys in the defensive secondary have been outstanding. They can fly and get to the ball. Everybody has been doing a great job.

“We’re executing well and the defense has played great. But, Woodland Hills will be ready for us. It’s going to be a good game, a tough conference game. For us to beat them, we must run the ball well and hold our ground. We do that, then we could be considered right in there with the best in the WPIAL.”

USC the best

Currently, Upper St. Clair is considered the best in the Quad-A and the Panthers, who play host to Peters Township Sept. 13, proved that against Canon-McMillan. In a 47-0 win over the Big Macs, Joe Repischak completed 11 aerials for 197 passing yards. He tossed 80 of them to Morgan Lee, who finished with four grabs, plus a 68-yard punt return for a score.

In the triumph, Trevor Morrow rushed for three scores of 2, 5 and 10 yards. Mac Pope, Kevin Chrissis and Marcus Galie also ran for touchdowns of 1, 7 and 1 yards.

While USC has improved to 2-0 in the Southeastern Conference, Peters Township slipped to 1-1 after a 33-15 loss to Penn Hills. Marcus Ubinger scored both touchdowns for the Indians, one on a 9-yard reception from Cory Owen and one on a 3-yard run. Ubinger rushed for 85 yards on 18 carries.

Lebo at Plum

Mt. Lebanon and Plum both enter this Southeastern Conference clash at 7 p.m. searching for their first win of the 2013 campaign. While the Blue Devils opened with a non-league loss to defending state champion North Allegheny, 55-7, and the Mustangs dropped a 38-6 decision to Baldwin last week, both clubs suffered defeats at the hand of Bethel Park.

The Blue Devils showed signs of improvement in their 14-3 loss to the Hawks last Friday. Though Kellan Stout is still adapting to his new position, the signal caller completed 10 passes against BP for 76 yards. Shane Lefever hauled in six of those aerials for 64 yards while Troy Apke had three grabs for 26 yards.

Defensively, Matt Hoffman, Eddie Jenkins and Redge Nelson recovered fumbles for the Blue Devils. Nelson’s recovery enabled Lebo to register its three points on a 40-yard field goal by Robbie Constantino.

Against the Mustangs, Lebo’s primary concern will be stopping Will Fuhrer. He completed 11 passes for 134 yards and a 9-yard TD to Patrick Crossey against Baldwin. Lebo’s pass defense against BP proved effective as Levi Metheny was limited to two yards. He completed just 2 of 8 passes.

The Big Macs are coming off a 47-0 loss to Upper St. Clair, where they only gained 56 total yards, the Vikings are fresh from a 24-0 win over North Hills in a key Northern Eight Conference clash.

Luigi Lista-Brinza is a primary concern for the Big Macs as the running back rolled up 144 yards and one score against North Hills. Vikings also boast Florida State recruit J.J. Cosentino. He tossed a 2-yard TD to Graham Adomitis. Mitch MacZura kicked a 27-yard field goal and Riley Redman ran for an 8-yard TD.

SLS vs KO

This Century Conference fray pits cross-street rivals Seton-La Salle against Keystone Oaks at Dormont Stadium. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.

While K0 dropped to 0-2 after a 59-0 drubbing by South Fayette, Seton-La Salle improved to 2-0 in the league with a 41-16 win over McGuffey. While the Golden Eagles mustered just 95 total yards against the Lions, Tyler Perone rolled up 354 passing yards for SLS against the Highlanders (see related story). In addition to TD receptions by Danzel McKinley-Lewis (3), Rick Mellick (2) and Kevin Curran, Dom Del Greco converted five extra points for the Rebels.

SF at Steel Valley

In the shutout against Keystone Oaks, Brett Brumbaugh completed 6 of 9 passes for 159 yards. Grant Fetchet rushed for 146 yards on eight carries and scored four times on runs of 4, 6, 2 and 40 yards. Justin Waston caught three passes for 128 yards and two scores. His TD aerials went for 57 and 27 yards.

Hayden Oiler returned an interception 14 yards for a defensive TD. Nick Sabo and Hunter Hayes also ran for touchdowns, measuring 17 and 77 yards respectively.

Brian Coyne kicked the extra points.

The Ironmen, meanwhile, are coming off a 55-3 win against Burgettstown. D’Andre Pickens is a primary concern as he rushed for 281 yards and three scores of 56, 66 and 52 yards against the Blue Devils. He also caught a 7-yard TD pass from Connor Stevens, who also tossed a 63-yard bomb to Derek Taylor.

Josh Lapiana excelled, completing 11 of 20 passes for 320 yards. Dom Castello served as Lapiana’s top target, hauling in six receptions for 169 yards. He scored three times, twice on completions of 20 and 73 yards from Lapiana, and once on a 65-yard interception return.

Also for the Colts, Delmer King caught a 69-yard TD pass, Tanner Garris rushed for a 5-yard score and Tom Kovach connected on four extra points.

Class A

Chartiers-Houston used a 42-yard field goal by Mark Cushma to beat Bishop Canevin, 9-6, in a Black Hills Conference clash. Both teams are now 1-1 overall. For the Buccaneers, Miles Williamson also caught a 4-yard pass from Kaleb Susko in third quarter.

The Crusaders scored in the first frame on a 12-yard TD run by Reed Relosky.

While Char-Houston visits Serra Catholic for a 7:30 p.m. start Sept. 13, the Crusaders travel to Honus Wagner Field in Carnegie to play Carlynton. Kickoff is at 7.

Eleanor Bailey

Sports Editor

Eleanor Bailey has been the sports editor at The Almanac since 1982. She graduated from Duquesne University with a degree in journalism and speech communications.